"What would an ocean be without a monster lurking in the dark? It would be like sleep without dreams." ― Werner Herzog
"Last time on Total Drama Sci-Fi Showdown," Chris started as the camera panned in on him. "The contestants all went to the sci-fi mansion for the first time, taking in its luxurious feel and sci-fi designed interior. Too bad they couldn't enjoy it for long, not while they were hiding from Delilah that is." He chuckled.
The large hologram showed the portrait of Delilah in her green, serpent-like aura. "It was a game of hide and seek, and tag. One touch and a virus gets to you to eliminate you from the challenge. Good thing the mansion was large enough to give them many hiding spots. But only one can win the challenge, so they each carefully planned where they hid. Or at least, most did." It showed scenes where Desmond was hiding in the attic, Nicholas hiding between the shelves in the basement, Jude staying underwater in the pool, then Tatiana and Felix building a pillow fort in the arcade room.
The hologram then showed Phoebe and Cassie facing off against Delilah in the garden. "It was down to either Cassie or Phoebe, both girls in the same alliance but with different methods on how to win the game. The ranch girl sacrificed herself so that Phoebe may receive the immunity, which worked just as she wanted."
The hologram showed the scene where they were holding the elimination ceremony in the foyer. "Unlike the first merge elimination, the votes weren't too split up. The alliance of Cassie versus the alliance of Desmond, with everyone else either joining the crossfire or avoiding it. By the end of the day, it was Desmond that bit the bullet. Can Marvin put the target on someone else now that Desmond tried to blow his cover at his final moments? Can Terrance find a way to eliminate Nataline? Will Cassie continue to shield Phoebe, despite knowing her chances are getting slimmer and slimmer? Find out now on Total...Drama...Sci-Fi Showdown!" Chris exclaimed as the theme song played afterwards.
(Sci-Fi Mansion)
Phoebe woke up in her room in the sci-fi mansion. She slowly sat up and rubbed her eyes before looking around. Her room had a dollhouse design of the colors red and yellow. There is a high stand attached to the wall with a couple of porcelain dolls on display, and there are two porcelain dolls atop Phoebe's nightstand, one holding a violin and the other holding a lance. There is a large dollhouse in the corner of the room, opened in the middle to show more dolls scattered inside at different rooms. Phoebe stood up to go pick out her clothes in the wardrobe then went outside when she was finished.
"Is N-Nataline awake?" She wondered to herself. She left her room and looked around the hallway but found that Nataline wasn't roaming around. "M-Maybe she's still taking a b-bath." Phoebe concluded.
The doll faced girl then looked behind her to see the reward door for the Silver Terminators, the neon lights still on. She tentatively went towards it and touched the cold steel of the door.
"M-Maybe I should e-explore a little. I'm t-trying to be brave, r-right?" She stuttered and gulped. "I c-can also go here since it's my t-team's reward door." She reasoned with herself and opened the door. The room itself is a bit spacious as it had no furniture save for a single pedestal in the center. The room is by small yet numerous lights that gave a faint silver light. A large lightbulb shining a silver light shone directly above the pedestal, as if giving emphasis to it. Phoebe looked down and saw the path had lights merged with the floor. It spelled out the words "Asset Room" in the silver color and a digital looking font.
"Is t-this it?" Phoebe went closer to the pedestal to inspect it a bit more. It has a square hatch and a red button. After a while of internal debate, she gently pressed down the red button before covering herself, expecting it to explode on her face. A soft shirring sound can be heard and the hatch opened. "W-What's happening?"
A small stand emerged from inside, and it contained an asset atop it. It's a small metallic cube that is designed with neon green marks and lines. Phoebe's hand shook as she carefully picked up the object with an anxious look.
"P-Please don't explode." Phoebe said meekly to the cube. After seeing that it didn't blow up in her face, she calmed down a bit and inspected it curiously. "B-But what is it?" She tried to feel around the cube but nothing happened. With a mix of an anxious and curious look, she left the room.
~Confessional~
Phoebe: I t-took it to m-my room but I still don't k-know what the cube is for. It's s-supposed to be an a-asset room right? B-But they didn't say w-what it's used for.
~End Confessional~
Meanwhile, Nataline had entered the reward room for the Cyan Protoss. She made her way to the center and soon Marietta's voice can be heard in and echo all around the room.
"Greetings, heir of the Louise family." The AI said.
"You know, I still don't get why I only got one question yesterday when Cyrus got three the first time he was here." Nataline shook her head as she stood on the pedestal.
"Chris re-programmed me concerning that. My apologies but there was nothing I could do." Marietta answered.
"Fine. I guess one question is enough." Nataline sighed.
"Then what will it be, Lady Nataline?" Marietta asked her.
"Is there anything I should know when it comes to winning the next challenge?" Nataline asked.
"I hope you can fight underwater." Marietta answered, her monotonous tone sounding a bit more amused.
"Seriously?" Nataline widened her eyes at the revelation.
"I bid you good luck on your challenge." Marietta said before her presence couldn't be felt anymore in the room.
~Confessional~
Nataline: So it's a kind of swimming challenge that involves fighting? I'm glad I get to wear my swimsuit but I wonder if it's safe to fight while wearing one.
~End Confessional~
Both girls ate their breakfast at the dining room, where they are being served by the robot chefs that Lucy found in the kitchen yesterday. They sat across from each other and both smiled when the robots served them their food, with the doll faced girl looking a bit anxious at first. Phoebe ordered french toast with syrup and pineapple juice. Nataline got her egg and potato sandwich, chocolate cake, and earl gray tea.
"Y-You eat cake for b-breakfast?" Phoebe meekly asked.
"Yeah. It tastes good." Nataline smiled in a friendly manner as she cut her sandwich and took a piece with her fork. "I know not many people do that. Does it bother you?"
"N-No. Not at a-all!" Phoebe quickly said and shook her head.
"There's really no need to be anxious around me." Nataline assured her. "I won't bite."
"B-But you look c-completely different when t-there's a challenge." Phoebe pouted.
"Well that's because I'm competitive about it. This is Total Drama, right? You can't let your guard down." Nataline said.
"R-Right." Phoebe poured syrup on her french toast and then took a bite. "I wish I w-was as competitive as y-you."
"You don't have to be me in order to win." Nataline said to the doll faced girl. "You just have to play the game."
"B-But I'm not strong or s-smart." Phoebe said sadly as she picked at her food. "I don't k-know how long I'll l-last."
"I'm sure you'll do fine." Nataline said with a smile. "Here, why not join me and Nicholas?"
"I'm already i-in an alliance." Phoebe told her. "I d-don't want Cassie to t-think I betrayed them."
"So you're with her huh? Makes sense as to why you always spend time with her." Nataline nodded in understanding. "It's fine. But when you need my help, then don't be afraid to ask, alright?"
"A-Alright." Phoebe beamed a bit.
~Confessional~
Nataline: Phoebe is such an adorable girl. Sometimes I wonder if the game is too much for her. I will try to help her out as much as I can, but hopefully I won't have to oppose her too much.
~End Confessional~
(Conservatory)
Almost everyone had left the conservatory early to explore, leaving Cassie, Valerie, and Marvin alone inside.
"Y'all did a great job in the votes last night." Cassie praised.
"Because if we didn't, you would have gone home." Valerie pointed out with a slight pout.
"Speaking of the votes, why weren't ya at the alliance meeting?" The ranch girl looked directly at Marvin. The boy just looked down and seemed to be deep in thought.
"I wanted to see how everyone else was voting." He answered.
"But you didn't come to see how we were voting." Valerie frowned and inched closer to Marvin, showing him more her sad face. Marvin leaned back a bit and sighed.
"You're right. Sorry about that. The merge got me kinda stressed out." Marvin explained.
"So who did ya vote for?" Cassie asked, crossing her arms and looking intently at Marvin. "Desmond said something very interesting before he left, don'tcha think?"
"He's trying to sabotage this alliance." Marvin lied. "I've always been loyal to you guys."
"Then who were the two votes against Cassie?" Valerie asked.
"I'm not sure." Marvin shook his head. "But you have to believe me. I would never betray the alliance."
"But I'm still curious to who has it out for me." Cassie pondered.
"Well I still see Terrance trying to get rid of Nataline." Marvin looked up while thinking. "Cyrus might have voted for you or Desmond. I don't know what Lucy's up to or Jude for that matter. Maybe it's Nicholas or Nataline or Tatiana who see you as a threat and voted against you."
"Ya got a point there." Cassie said. "Those three do have good qualities when it comes to physical challenges."
"So at least two of them targeted you to get far?" Valerie tilted her head. "I can sorta understand that. But then we gotta take action, right?" She winked.
"I'll see what I can do, y'all." Cassie promised. "But first I gotta find Jude and Lucy."
"Good luck." Marvin as the ranch girl stood up. "I'll go see what Cyrus is up to."
"It's sad being his friend, huh?" Valerie giggled.
"We're more like acquaintances." Marvin quickly said.
This made Valerie giggle more. "Sure he is."
~Confessional~
Marvin: I may have dodged the suspicions for now, but it will become clear once the cast thins out. I have to do something about this, but what I said earlier wasn't a complete lie. I do not know what Lucy's intentions are, and Cyrus isn't to be trusted. I'm really not so good at this strategy thing, but if it's for Phoebe and I, then I'll do it.
Valerie: It's kinda cute how Cyrus and Marvin differ in interests but still manage to be civil. Well I'm sure he's loyal enough to drop him once the numbers get low. But really, I didn't doubt him.
~End Confessional~
Felix and Arnold met up in the ruins of the church once again.
"Now it's just us." Arnold sighed. "This team is losing stability."
"And where's Marvin?" Felix asked as he looked around. "Shouldn't he be here with us?"
"I saw him stay behind with Cassie and Valerie." Arnold clenched his fist. "Maybe last night, he voted for Desmond!"
"You really think so?" Felix asked. "I thought he didn't want her to take control of the game. How can he betray the band like this?"
"Because in the end, he's still loyal to his original team." Arnold concluded. "That's why Desmond said he's a double agent. He probably figured out Marvin betrayed us and tried to warn us."
"So we shouldn't talk strategy to him anymore?" Felix sat down on a pile of rubble. "That's gotta suck."
"For him." Arnold closed his eyes as he looked down. "We'll avenge Desmond, don't worry." He said solemnly.
"Hello, boys." A voice called out from behind them. "Why the long faces?" They turned around to see Lucy walking towards them.
"Lucy?" Arnold narrowed his eyes at the red eyed girl. "What do you want?"
"I want to talk strategy." Lucy said, grinning.
"And why should we be interested?" Arnold raised his voice a bit.
"Actually I'm pretty interested." Felix shrugged. Arnold gave him a look and the prankster cleared his throat and kept quiet.
"You'll find that my proposal might just save your little...band." Lucy chuckled with a hint of a sinister vibe. "You did lose your lead singer after all."
"Just say it already. We weren't done talking." Arnold said impatiently.
"You will vote for whoever I tell you to." Lucy said simply but her red eye glowed as she said it.
"Whoever you want?" Felix repeated. "Even if you tell us to vote for each other."
"Oh, I would never ask that so suddenly." Lucy assured him. "Just get rid of those that are not part of this group I have. People like Cassie and her majority alliance." The red eyed girl walked around the ruins of the church leisurely. "People like Nicholas and Nataline." She added.
"Seems good enough." Felix shrugged. "Right, Arnold?"
The soccer player sighed. "We don't have much of a choice. If we don't do it, then Cassie's alliance will surely vote us all off."
"Then we have a deal?" Lucy giggled. She went over to Arnold and extended her hand for a shake.
"Deal." Arnold shook her hand and Lucy's red eye glowed a bit.
~Confessional~
Arnold: We're in a bad situation in this second half, I'll admit. Even ace strikers get desperate sometimes. I need to defeat the bigger alliance, even if it means joining up with the same Blue Ardonian member that went against me.
Felix: I don't see why Arnold was being cautious of Lucy. Aside from her obvious red eye, she looks friendly enough. Is there something I'm missing here?
~End Confessional~
Tatiana found her mecha chocobo in an abandoned car repair shop in the post-apocalyptic city. She sat beside it and it squawked at her then nuzzled its head against her affectionately.
"Sorry girl. Looks like Terrance won't be fixing you today." Tatiana said sadly to her mount as she pet its head. It squawked and relaxed in her touch. She then looked outside and saw Terrance scavenging for something in the wreckage of cars. "But what is he doing, though?"
Terrance used his psionic blade to cut off a car's manual transmission parts. He collected it all and carried it with him as he made his way down the broken road.
"What exactly are you working on?" The techie boy got startled a bit when he saw Nicholas leaning against the unlighted lamp post.
"It's none of your business." Terrance grunted and walked past the detective.
"I can only deduce that it is another machine." Nicholas said as he followed Terrance with his gaze. "Much like Tatiana's mecha chocobo, perhaps?"
"Even that was still of my design." Terrance adjusted his glasses as he turned to face the other boy.
"Then where is it?" Nicholas asked evenly. Terrance widened his eyes.
"I...don't actually know." He finally said. "I think Tatiana still has it. But it's broken as far as I remember."
"So you decide to invest in another thing? I have yet to see that blade of yours become useful in a challenge." Nicholas remarked.
"Shut up. I used it to fight Nataline in the lightsaber challenge." Terrance said with confidence as he ignited his psionic blade to show him.
"And did it make you win the duel?" Nicholas asked with a side smirk.
"No." Terrance grumbled. "But it'll win me a challenge someday. Maybe in this next one."
"Then why create another machine? You are contradicting yourself." Nicholas said to the techie boy.
"No I'm not!" Terrance insisted, his face getting a bit agitated. "This one will compliment my psionic blade! It'll be a better asset than even that damn mecha chocobo!" He heard someone gasp. Turning to his side, he saw Tatiana there, her shocked face clearly visible.
"Did you...did you mean that?" The gamer girl choked out. "I thought you said you'd help me repair it..." She looked down.
"Tatiana?" Terrance looked surprised to see her there. "Look, it's not what you-"
"It's alright, really." Tatiana looked up and gave a forced smile. "I'll just repair it myself. Go ahead and make your new machine. I hope it goes well for you." She said before walking back to the garage where her mecha chocobo was.
"Wait!" Terrance called out and was about to follow her when the roll up door suddenly closed down.
"I bid you luck as well." Nicholas said as he began to walk away. "However, I'll be doing my best to overcome it." He added.
"Tsk." Terrance took one last look at the garage and remembered its location before walking down the road again.
~Confessional~
Nicholas: By the looks of it, Terrance is a dangerous individual. He creates his own assets from what he can salvage in this post-apocalyptic world instead of waiting for Chris to hand them out. It's one thing to be an arms dealer, and another to be the manufacturer.
Terrance: Okay I was pissed off and said some wrong things. I'll go apologize to Tatiana about that later when I got the time. Right now, I need to finish the blueprints of my new asset. I hope I can win this challenge to I can speed it up by working in the mansion's mechanic room. It's got everything I need to make this the highest quality.
Tatiana: *she wipes away a tear* I can't believe he said that! We worked on it together and now he's just gonna abandon it!? Has he forgotten how many challenges we've won because of it? How useful it was? I don't see his psionic blade thingy winning him anything. *she crosses her arms* Guess I'll go try and repair it myself then. Good thing the garage has tools.
~End Confessional~
Marvin saw Cyrus looking at craters of various sizes at a wasteland. The emo boy seemed to be observing it intently.
"Is this for inspiration?" Marvin asked him as he approached.
"Yeah. So?" Cyrus looked over his shoulder but didn't fully face him.
"Nothing really, just small talk." Marvin said. "Sorry about the vote last night."
"You actually brought that up." Cyrus scoffed. "So what was that all about? I was literally the only vote against Nicholas!"
"Maybe Lucy changed her mind at the last minute." Marvin suggested.
"She doesn't look like the type to just change her vote." Cyrus narrowed his eyes at him. "Don't play dumb."
"I'm not. Go ask her yourself how she voted." Marvin lied.
"Maybe later tonight." Cyrus grunted. "So what is it you want? Don't tell me she has a new target in mind. Because I don't want to hear it from you anymore."
"I don't wanna talk about tonight's vote, because we don't know who will be immune tonight." Marvin explained. "I'm just gonna ask you who you hate the most here that you want voted out."
"Pretty sure you know the answer to that." Cyrus fully faced him now.
"I have a guess." Marvin placed a hand on his chin in thought. "It's Phoebe, right?"
"Yeah." Cyrus affirmed. "Stop asking just to confirm it yourself."
"Who else do you hate here?" Marvin asked again. "Other than Phoebe."
"I hate Nataline too." Cyrus growled a bit as he looked out at the craters again. "She gave me a hard time in the Cyan Protoss. I definitely want her gone."
"I can help you with that at least." Marvin offered.
"And where will you find the votes for that? Not even Terrance could do it." Cyrus gave an amused scoff. "What can you do?"
"I'm sure some people will see her as a threat and unfair competition." Marvin thought aloud. "All we have to do is nudge people in that direction, instead of their initial targets." He emphasized the last part as he gazed at Cyrus.
"Are you telling me this so I have something better to do than vote off Phoebe?" Cyrus rolled his eyes. "Because even if I follow it and she goes home, the doll faced girl is next!" He said with conviction.
"Then that's when we'll oppose each other. But the cast is too big for that right now." Marvin explained. He held out his hand. "So what do you say? Truce?" Cyrus seemed reluctant but shook his hand.
"Truce." The emo boy said.
~Confessional~
Cyrus: Marvin obviously has some ulterior motive, but I don't care so much. Like I said before, my chances to win or to make it very far into this game are slim because of the enemies I've made here. I'm enjoying the scenery for inspiration, but I'd enjoy it more if Phoebe is finally eliminated. But I guess I can switch my efforts to take out Nataline for now.
~End Confessional~
Cassie saw Lucy meeting up with Jude in the park just like yesterday. The ranch girl adjusted her hat a bit before going over there to talk to them.
"Howdy, y'all." Cassie greeted with a smile.
"Howdy." Jude grinned as he saw her. "Great vote last night, huh."
"Sure was." Cassie nodded.
"I remember us having a deal about it." Lucy smiled. "You said you'd help with our next vote if we did what you wanted last night."
"Ya got it." Cassie nodded as she tipped her hat forward. "Who did y'all have in mind?"
"Nicholas." Lucy answered.
"About time." Jude sighed in relief.
"The silver haired boy?" Cassie looked up in thought. "Why not? Ya got our support on that one."
"With six votes, we have a strong lead." Jude grinned.
"But it won't be enough unless we can divide the votes of the others." Lucy reminded him. "That, and make sure Nicholas does not win immunity."
"I can help make that happen. Y'all can know that we're on your side here." Cassie assured them as she turned to leave.
"Thanks." Lucy called out as the ranch girl left. After she was out of earshot, she chuckled in a sinister tone.
"Is that your laugh?" Jude blinked. Lucy nodded and innocently smiled at him. "It's cute!" He added.
~Confessional~
Cassie: Things are looking up for us once again. We may started out wrong when merge hit, but we'll be back up and running in no time!
Lucy: Everything is just as it should be. With Cassie's alliance, I can eliminate Nicholas and make them take the fall for it. That way, people will turn their attention to them and I can use Arnold and Felix to help finish them off. Yes, all according to plan.
Jude: I don't exactly know what Lucy's whole strategy is, but I'm glad to help out either way. With my vote, we're basically the majority! Nicholas better watch his back, because this is payback for making Lucy cry back then.
~End Confessional~
The contestants all met with Chris outside of the conservatory, minus Phoebe and Nataline.
"So what's this one gonna be?" Jude asked as he cracked his neck and grinned.
"Please say it's not another physical challenge." Cyrus sighed.
"Perhaps a mentally challenging one would be a nice change of pace." Nicholas remarked.
"Quiet down so I can actually explain what the challenge is!" Chris ordered. This made everyone quiet and the host grinned. "Good. Now before we start the challenge, you all must change into your swimsuits."
"Our swimsuits?" Felix tilted his head.
"Our swimsuits!?" Valerie beamed. "Yes!"
"Ya seem happy about this." Cassie remarked.
"I get to wear a swimsuit and see the hot guys wear one too! Isn't it awesome?" Valerie giggled. She then noticed everyone staring at her. "Oh wait, I just said that out loud, huh?"
"Well enough excitement for now and just get dressed." Chris snapped his fingers and blue sparks ignited beside them, forming into shapes and forms until it fully became a set of changing rooms. "I'll give you time for it, since I have to see if the past challenge winners are done changing too."
"Why do I get the feeling that our swimsuits are just gonna be a bother to us?" Cyrus sighed as he went to get his swim clothes.
"Maybe to you, because you're not hot!" Valerie called out as she skipped to get her stuff, with Cassie smirking behind her.
"Ya really are too excited 'bout this." The ranch girl said.
"Yes! I get to try out my new swimsuit!" Tatiana exclaimed as she ran ahead of the two girls to get her stuff and immediately claim a changing room.
~Confessional~
Tatiana: *she is wearing a yellow bikini with a small skirt that had chocobo prints everywhere* I always wanted to wear this ever since we started out this season. If I got eliminated early, I would have worn it at the resort but I don't mind wearing it for a challenge.
Felix: *he is wearing a blue swimming trunks that had the symbol of a brain fart on the back* I wonder what we'll be doing. I mean, I think anyone can guess that we're going swimming, but I wanna know what we're actually doing so that maybe I can prepare a prank. It's been too long, after all.
Arnold: *he is wearing a green swimming shorts with a star symbol on the bottom right* I wonder if you can play soccer underwater. If we can, maybe I can be the ace striker in that aspect too.
~End Confessional~
After some time has passed, everyone has changed into their swim wear.
"Nicholas is so ripped!" Valerie gushed as the detective went out of the changing room in his silver and black swimming shorts. The flirt is wearing a lacy scarlet bikini with heart designs.
"Stop saying that out loud." Cassie scolded as she exited her changing stall. Valerie turned towards her and her mouth was agape. The ranch girl is wearing a pink lacy bikini that really showed off her features.
"What the-" The flirt was in shock. "I didn't expect you'd wear something like that!"
"Yeah, gotta admit that." Felix chimed in with a red face.
"Hmph." Terrance looked away and adjusted his glasses with a slight blush on his face. The techie boy is wearing a simple black swimming trunks.
"Lucina picked it out for me, y'all!" Cassie exclaimed in embarrassment as she tried to cover herself with her arms, with little to no success.
"Well it's hot!" Valerie beamed. "I just got taken aback that's all." She giggled.
"You look cute in that, Lucy." Jude complimented his girlfriend as he saw her leave the changing room. Lucy just smiled at his compliment. She is wearing a one piece dark blue swimsuit while Jude is wearing a white rash guard with gray stripes on the sides, and gray swimming shorts.
"Thanks darling." Lucy giggled sweetly. She then looked away and her red eye glowed a bit. "Whatever." She muttered under her breath.
"I wonder what the challenge will be." Marvin thought aloud as he fixed his cyan colored swimming trunks.
"Hopefully it's as simple as beach volleyball, but that's not sci-fi nor is it Chris' style." Cyrus rolled his eyes. He is wearing black swimming shorts with skull prints.
"It better be another physical challenge." Arnold grinned. "That way, you won't get any chance at winning." The soccer player smirked at the emo boy.
"Now I wish it was beach volleyball so I can spike the ball at your smug face." Cyrus groaned.
"It's still a physical sport though." Arnold laughed and walked off to join Felix.
Just then, blue sparks appeared in front of the contestants and Chris' avatar formed, along with Nataline and Phoebe already in their swimsuits. Nataline wore a black bikini with white lace while Phoebe wore a one piece swimsuit that is color yellow and has a small skirt with light pink edges.
"Good morning everyone." Nataline greeted with a small smile.
"You look lovely, Nataline." Nicholas smiled as Nataline joined him.
"Thanks." Nataline said. "I've been wondering when I can wear this."
"Hey there!" Tatiana skipped towards them. "You got a fit body after all. It's hard to tell because of the clothes you usually wear." She remarked.
"That's true." Nataline said with a light laugh. "I hope this next challenge goes well for us."
"H-Hello." Phoebe said shyly.
"Awww~ Phoebe is so cute." Valerie gushed. "I wish I had my phone to take pictures right now." She giggled.
"Don't mind her, Phoebe." Cassie scratched the back of her head.
"Good! Everyone's ready." Chris exclaimed. He then snapped his fingers and a portal appeared beside him. "Now just enter this portal and I'll explain everything afterwards." He ordered. Everyone obeyed and entered the portal one by one.
~Confessional~
Cassie: *looks down at her bikini* Lucina also insisted I bring this for Total Drama. It's kinda embarrassing, y'know? But at least it makes me maneuver well so that works out.
Phoebe: My s-sister and I u-used to take swimming class together. She w-was obviously the b-better swimmer and I c-can't swim well when I g-get really anxious a-about something. I h-hope this challenge i-isn't too taxing.
Cyrus: Unlike Valerie, I don't get riled up or turned on in seeing people in their swim wear. Honestly, I don't see the reason why. They're just showing more skin than usual, big deal. In fact it makes getting injured way easier.
Lucy: *her red eye glows* That Jude better focus on the challenge and not on me. I didn't wear this to become eye-candy for him, I wore this because Chris told us to. Purely for the challenge, and I know very well how men can get all worked up in seeing a girl in her swim suit so I have to personally make Jude focus.
~End Confessional~
They ended up in a massive submarine, already submerged underwater. They glanced around and saw that they are in the ocean's depths and also saw unusual fishes swimming.
"This looks familiar." Terrance remarked as he stared out of the circular window.
"Where are we?" Marvin wondered out loud.
"Underwater, duh." Arnold snickered.
"Yes because Earth has these kinds of fishes." Cyrus rolled his eyes as he observed the life forms as well.
"Welcome to the planet Piscciss, an aquatic planet in God knows where." Chris shrugged. "Now your challenge is gonna be simple."
"Or is it?" Felix asked skeptically.
"Okay you got me. It's not." Chris laughed. "Anyways, for today's challenge, you have to get out there and steal the planet's core."
"I'm going to assume that the creatures that live here will be our obstacles?" Nicholas asked as he was still gazing out the window.
"That's right." Chris nodded. "This submarine has mini vessels you can use to get there faster, but if push comes to shove then you can always swim there." He chuckled.
"Sounds like fun, y'all." Cassie sighed.
"And here I thought it was just gonna be a beach challenge." Valerie pouted.
"Well too bad." Chris said. "Just go down the ladder and on the pods so we can begin."
The contestants all went down the ladder in the back and went to their respective pods and vessels.
~Confessional~
Terrance: These vessels look fast but not that durable. Good thing the controls were easy to understand.
Tatiana: This is gonna be so cool! I always wanted an underwater adventure! Too bad I can't enjoy the depths will all these creatures coming after me but at least it's a start.
Jude: I hope Lucy doesn't mind the aquatic life here. She did say that she likes sea creatures so it'll be sad to see them torment us in this challenge. Maybe there can be some way I can protect her.
~End Confessional~
After everyone had settled in on their vessels, Chris pressed a button on the control panel and all of it launched off from the main submarine through chutes leading directly out into the water. Every vessel has a microphone and small speakers to let everyone know what the others are saying at all times. The vessel speed is fast enough to out speed the more basic aquatic life around them, as they all look harmless enough.
"Race you all there!" Tatiana exclaimed as her vessel moved forth, following the map and radar she has on the vessel's controls.
"Not so fast!" Arnold said as he caught up with her. Cassie and Valerie went together but were gaining on the soccer player's vessel.
"Don't think we're out of the challenge yet~" Valerie chimed in.
"I still don't get some of these figures and symbols on here, y'all." Cassie sighed.
"It is wise for us to move carefully, Nataline." Nicholas said as he and Nataline went together at a much more steady pace.
"You're right. We do not know what lies in the depths of this planet." Nataline said.
"I know your defeat is just around the corner though." Terrance smirked as he sped ahead of the two.
"Why did Arnold leave me!?" Felix exclaimed as he sped past the two as well.
"And nobody seemed to have listened." Nataline sighed. Lucy and Jude came up from behind them.
"That is because everyone wants to win." Lucy giggled. "You may think you are safe for now but elimination is just around the corner."
"You tell 'em Lucy!" Jude laughed. "Let's go on ahead." He said and they both sped away.
"Do you mind if we join you both?" Marvin asked as he and Phoebe went to join Nicholas and Nataline.
"Are you sure you don't want to go ahead like the others?" Nataline asked.
"We want to play it safe." Marvin answered.
"Y-Yes. It c-can get pretty s-scary down here." Phoebe said meekly.
"Don't worry, we'll protect you." Nataline said to the doll faced girl. "Right, Nicholas?"
"Our priority is to win. There is no need to protect anyone in this challenge." Nicholas said even.
"I u-understand. You r-really don't have to go the e-extra mile for m-me." Phoebe said quickly.
"I respect you, Phoebe." Nicholas said. "You came into the merge despite being physically weak and not so mentally strong. You must be doing something right if that is the case. May the better player win."
"R-Right." Phoebe said.
"The water pressure is rising." Marvin told them. "We're heading further down."
"Careful or the sea predators might get you." Cyrus snickered as his vessel came to join them.
"E-Eeeek! S-Sea p-p-predators!?" Phoebe repeated in a more anxious tone.
"Don't scare her." Nataline said sternly. "And just leave us alone!"
"It is also not good to travel in large numbers." Nicholas added.
"Sorry Cyrus." Marvin said to the emo boy.
"Whatever." Cyrus scoffed and went on ahead. Suddenly, their speakers picked up on a shriek.
"Aaaah!" Valerie shrieked again as her vessel was being pummeled by three purple and blue sea creatures that had strong jaws, harassing the vessel over and over again by slamming into it. The metal clang and received multiple dents and the vessel itself started going haywire with the movement.
"Hold on, I got ya!" Cassie exclaimed as she tried to maneuver her vessel to slam against one of the creatures. It made contact but only stunned it for a while. This enraged them and then focus their attention on the ranch girl.
"Cassie!" Valerie saw that her friend was being pummeled hard, and then saw more of them rushing in to join the fray. Some of the creatures had pointy noses and were firing projectiles at the vessel, further damaging and subsequently piercing through it. The flirt desperately searched her controls for any way to help Cassie and found the weapons controls. "Get away from her!" She opened fire and blaster shots fired out from the small guns the vessel were actually equipped with.
The sea creatures took damage and some even died, but the rest noticed the retaliation and went after Valerie again, leaving Cassie's broken up vessel to descend down the depths. Suddenly, the top part opened and Cassie swam out, her body covered in a light green aura that seemed out counter the water pressure and allowed her to breathe easy.
"That was scary, y'all." Cassie remarked and then saw Valerie's vessel plummet down. The ranch girl's eyes widened and started to swim away, but two of the projectile firing creatures saw her escape and fired on her, eliminating her from the challenge as her avatar flickered out.
~Confessional~
Cyrus: 'Not good to travel in large numbers', he said. He didn't have to beat around the bush. He can just say that we doesn't want me around and that's that. Well it's whatever since I'll just have to get to the core first. I'm pretty sure Phoebe will slow them down anyway.
Valerie: Those things were pretty fast and scary. *she pouts* I just wish Chris had given us a photo or something of what they look like so I wouldn't have to be taken by surprise when one of them was basically kissing the windshield.
~End Confessional~
Tatiana and Arnold were still racing towards the core of the planet. By this time, Terrance was already gaining on them and all three of them heard what happened to Cassie and Valerie through their speakers.
"Well that sounded scary." Tatiana gulped.
"Don't slow down now." Arnold laughed and went up beside her vessel.
"I won't!" Tatiana exclaimed as she sped on ahead.
"Uh, guys?" Terrance called their attention. "I think we got company now." He looked towards where the army of sea creatures started to surround them. Some of them opened fire already with a few hits making contact.
"Then let's retaliate at once!" Tatiana opened fire as well and blasted a few of the monsters that went too close to her vessel. Arnold did the same and took down some melee and some ranged ones.
"Damn it." Terrance cursed as his vessel shook and rocked from the hits he was taking. Tatiana saw this and immediately came to his aid.
"Don't worry, I got you." The gamer girl said and opened fire. Terrance helped as well and soon they fended off the first wave. The second wave came shortly after and gave chase, forcing them to speed up even more.
"I think I see the core!" Arnold exclaimed as he saw a small landmass in the distance.
"Hurry up, Terrance!" Tatiana called out. She saw the Terrance's vessel was already giving off sparks and the motors started to die out.
"I can't." The techie boy said. As he said that, a couple of projectiles connected with his vessel and it exploded before he could eject.
"Noooo!" Tatiana looked on in shock before turning back and chasing after Arnold.
~Confessional~
Tatiana: Was my help not enough? What if he ignores me even more because I wasn't useful? Well I don't see Lucy helping him so maybe he'll reconsider.
Arnold: I didn't help out because I know that they'll get overwhelmed easily. If I can get to the core safely, then I basically win the challenge. Might as well let those creatures slow them down.
~End Confessional~
Lucy and Jude were tailing Felix as he was speeding ahead to get to the core quickly. A swarm of sea creatures closed in on the prankster's vessel and started bashing into it repeatedly.
"Ah! Help me! Someone!" Felix called out.
"Sure." Lucy giggled over the microphone. She then faced Jude and made hand gestures saying that they should go around and avoid the scuffle. Jude nodded and they both went around to leave Felix to his doom.
"Wait, seriously!?" Felix saw them leave him behind. "Fine then, guess I'm on my own." He pressed the eject button and was immediately launched away from his vessel. He frantically swam away from the monsters but didn't get far before one of them crunched him with its jaws, forcing his avatar to flicker out.
"Well that's the end of his run." Jude looked back and saw Felix flicker out.
"It may be underhanded, but one of us should definitely secure invincibility." Lucy explained to him as they kept going. "We shouldn't feel sorry for them."
"Yeah. Got it." Jude looked sad for a bit but shook his head and followed Lucy.
Soon they saw Tatiana's vessel get blown up in the distance.
"Well that shortens our work." Lucy smirked.
"Hey, some of them are looking our way." Jude warned.
"Then let's pave a way for us." Lucy said.
They opened fire on the sea creatures that turned and started to attack them. They blasted most of them before they neared the landmass where Arnold had landed.
"Gahh!" Lucy's vessel rocked to the side as projectiles harassed the side of her vessel.
"Lucy!" Jude turned and fired on the creatures attacking his girlfriend, but they all swerved out of the way and continued to fire on the red eyed girl.
"Hurry and shoot them!" Lucy said irritably. "Aren't you supposed to be a marksman!?"
"Well yeah but guns from a submarine is different." Jude frowned.
"I don't care just-" Lucy couldn't finish her statement before her vessel exploded due to the accurate shots of the sea creatures.
"Damn." Jude opened fire with more aggression this time and managed to blast down a couple of them. The sea creatures started to disperse and retreat. "Get back here!" He was about to chase them down when he remembered what Lucy told him earlier. "No, I won't be able to win at this rate." With a heavy sigh, he decided to go back to where the landmass was.
~Confessional~
Jude: I hope Lucy doesn't get mad at me for that bad aim. I swear that the controls are hard to master in a short amount of time. I'm a known marksman for my bow skills anyway, not for firing blasters.
~End Confessional~
Nicholas, Nataline, Marvin, and Phoebe all heard the commotion through the speakers in their vessels.
"Looks like the challenge has started for them." Nicholas noted.
"Does that mean we should proceed with caution?" Marvin asked as he went beside Phoebe to guard her.
"Is i-it scary monsters o-out there?" Phoebe asked anxiously.
"I'm sure we'll be fine with a group like this." Nataline assured her. "We just need to watch out for anything that might come after us."
"We have incoming." Nicholas said suddenly. The sea creatures came in from ahead of them, about to clash. The detective opened fire and the others followed suit except for Phoebe, who was too terrified to move the controls properly.
"Got one." Marvin said as he downed one of them. Another one bashed against his vessel and put him off course, but he regained control immediately to fire upon it. Meanwhile, Nicholas and Nataline easily maneuvered around while firing, preventing any of the sea creatures from getting too close. Phoebe kept trying to flee from the creatures, shrieking and not wanting to engage in combat.
"E-Eeeekk!" The doll faced girl's vessel got harassed even more and was soon in critical condition.
"Phoebe!" Nataline swooped in and fired on the creatures surrounding the other girl's vessel. She managed to make them disperse, but Phoebe's vessel started descending. "No!" She was about to descend to try and help but projectiles shot at her vessel. More creatures had come to stop their group.
"We won't be able to win this fight at this rate." Nicholas said calmly. "We need to go on ahead."
"But Phoebe is in danger!" Nataline exclaimed.
"I'll go get her." Marvin offered as he shot down a projectile-firing creature and sent his vessel downwards. More shots were shot his way but he took minimal damage from it and continued on.
"We should help them." Nataline said.
"There is no time." Nicholas reasoned as he blasted down two more creatures. "Let's entrust it to Marvin."
"Okay-" Nataline was cut off when her vessel was shot at and exploded as a result. Nicholas spun his vessel a bit to see what eliminated her and saw Cyrus with a victorious smirk on his face.
"Got you now." The emo boy said and opened fire on Nicholas next.
"I don't think so." Nicholas retaliated and fired on Cyrus as well. Much to Cyrus' dismay, the detective's shots are connecting more than his own. Soon, his vessel exploded but not before he ejected out.
"Tsk." Cyrus grunted and tried to swim away. Nicholas chose to ignore him and continued on the path towards the core.
Meanwhile, Marvin shot the last creature that was after Phoebe's vessel before catching sight of the vessel itself.
"Phoebe! Can you hear me?" Marvin said into the microphone.
"Y-Yeah. The c-cube is doing s-something." Phoebe said in a slightly scared voice. The camera showed the inside of Phoebe's vessel, where the cube was attached to the control panel and was spreading out long yet thin tendrils that seemed to encase most of the damaged vessel. The engine stabilized and it was set into auto pilot, suddenly lurching the vessel upwards to stay on track. "E-Eeek! I don't k-know what's h-happening!"
"Hang on." Marvin said and went closer to investigate. He saw the tendrils enveloped even the outside of the vessel, and upon a closer look, noticed that it was repairing the vessel. "Calm down, Phoebe. Looks like your ride is being repaired."
"It i-is?" Phoebe opened her eyes and saw that she was back on track. She started to smile but shrieked again when more sea creatures swam towards their location. "M-More of them!" She closed her eyes in fear.
"I'll protect you." Marvin said and started to fire on them. His shots weren't enough to keep them at bay and some of them came dangerously close to Phoebe's vessel.
However, that soon ended when her vessel started to open fire on its own, dropping the creatures with deadly accuracy. The vessel continued on its way without faltering, easily dodging the ones that shoot out projectiles and blasting them down as well.
"Hey Phoebe, um, some help over here?" Marvin requested as he was surrounded by a couple of the creatures, his vessel taking heavy damage.
"I c-can't control it." Phoebe said anxiously as she desperately tried to move the controls but it wouldn't obey. "I t-think it's the c-cube?"
"Don't worry, I can still eject from here." Marvin said. He pressed the eject button and was launched off the vessel, but immediately bumped into one of the creatures. "Oops." He gulped.
~Confessional~
Phoebe: *looks at the camera anxiously* I didn't m-mean to leave h-him! It w-was acting on it's own and and a-and please I h-hope he doesn't get mad at m-me.
Marvin: I can't blame Phoebe or what her new asset did. I mean, it was probably programmed to save her life so I can't be mad about that. I just wished I did the eject more properly.
~End Confessional~
The scene switched to the small pathway that leads towards the core's location. Jude's vessel emerged out of the water and the marksman exited it.
"That was one heck of a ride." Jude stretched a bit before going down the pathway. It wasn't long before he heard voices in the distance. "What's happening over there?" He jogged until he reached the center point of the landmass, where he saw the core in the middle being protected by two guards looking like fish people with armor and armed with spears. Over on the other entrances were Arnold and Tatiana, squaring off against one guard that went to apprehend them.
"I just want to touch the core." The gamer girl said, clearly dripping wet.
"This is a restricted area. No unauthorized entry." The guard insisted while raising his golden spear at them.
"Oh yeah? Then take this!" Arnold suddenly charged at the guard and wrestled for his spear.
"Nice! An opening!" Tatiana took this chance to go for the core, but one of the guards turned in time and charged up his spear a bit before firing a single blaster shot at her, catching her in the chest and immediately making her avatar flicker out.
Jude was watching it all from a distance, making sure he isn't spotted by the guards as he slowly crept his way towards the core. Just then, Nicholas came in from another entrance, but wasn't noticed as well as the guards were busy trying to take out Arnold. The soccer player tackled down the guard and wrestled the spear out of his grip.
"Now how do you use this thing?" Arnold experimented by looking down at the guard he just tackled down and piercing his chest, but the latter caught it and was trying to push it back when a blaster shot came from the spear and killed it. "Whoa this is cool!" Arnold didn't get to celebrate for long before a barrage of shots coming from the other two guards hit him and made his avatar disappear.
~Confessional~
Arnold: Not cool.
~End Confessional~
By that point, both Jude and Nicholas are slowly sneaking up on the two guards, both glaring at each other as they weighed their options. They didn't have to think for long before Phoebe's vessel burst forth from a different entrance, now having four arachnid-like legs courtesy of the cube's tendrils. The vessel let loose a burst of blaster shots and the whole place started to crumble.
"S-Sorry everyone! I c-can't control it!" Phoebe said from inside the vessel, looking scared as she watched the vessel gun down the last two guards before they could fire from their spears.
"Phoebe?" Jude looked on in disbelief. Nicholas, however, did not hesitate and rolled forward to avoid the incoming blaster shots.
"I'm almost there." The detective pressed on. Jude saw this and began running as well to try and beat him to it. The vessel moved forward and kept on firing, forcing the two boys to stop for a bit and dodge the attacks.
"I'm r-r-really sorry everyone." Phoebe meekly said. The tendrils formed a hook and chain at the front of the vessel and it shot out to snatch the core from the center, a cold circular object levitating atop a pedestal.
"Not so fast!" Jude desperately reached out and took hold of the chain, yanking it back to prevent it from grabbing the core. The vessel fought back and lifted the chain to pull Jude up, but the marksman did his best to hold his ground while trying to reach out for the core.
"And that's the end of it." Nicholas gave a small smile as he went and took the core for himself in one swipe of an arm.
"Hey no fair." Jude frowned.
"Actually, it is fair." Chris said as his hologram appeared beside Jude. The vessel stopped resisting and turned off upon his entrance. "Which means that Nicholas is the winner for this challenge! He gets immunity and a room in the sci-fi mansion."
"Seriously? And I was so close too." Jude sighed in frustration.
"It was a close game, I'll admit. Phoebe's asset made it even harder." Nicholas looked towards the doll faced girl, who had ejected from her vessel and went up to them shyly.
"P-Please don't hate me." Phoebe said meekly.
"Aw, I can't hate you just because of that." Jude scratched the back of his head.
"It was really thrilling that you can put up a good fight." Nicholas smiled. "I look forward to competing against you in the next challenge."
"Just her?" Jude rolled his eyes.
"You weren't much of an obstacle." Nicholas said evenly. "I had a plan to subdue you even before Phoebe appeared."
~Confessional~
Nicholas: I'm glad I won. I am aware that most, if not all, of the contestants see me as a threat. I will need to win as many immunity challenges as I can in order to secure my place here. Right now, I need to see who everyone is voting for. I doubt sticking with Cassie's alliance will do me any good in the long run.
Jude: That Nicholas. He thinks he's all cool just because he won one challenge? Well the next time he doesn't win one, he's going home.
~End Confessional~
Everyone gathered outside of the conservatory with Chris about to give an announcement.
"Alright so the ceremony will begin in an hour and will take place here." Chris instructed. "Go on and think who you'll be voting for tonight."
"You got it, Chris~" Valerie giggled.
"Let's get this over with." Cyrus groaned and went inside the conservatory, Marvin following close behind. Everyone else dispersed to talk about the votes.
"Cassie, we need to talk." Nicholas said to the ranch girl. Nataline approached them.
"Please hear us out." Nataline added.
"Well alright y'all." Cassie blinked. "No need to be so formal, y'know." Valerie skipped over to where they are with Phoebe walking beside her.
"What are we gathered here for?" Valerie asked.
"A-Are we going to t-talk about the votes?" Phoebe tilted her head. Nicholas nodded.
"That's right. But first, we are going to make one thing clear. Nataline and I voted for Desmond in the last elimination." Nicholas stated evenly. Cassie's eyes widened for a brief moment before she regained her composure.
"I see." The ranch girl nodded. "Thanks for that y'all."
"There is no need to thank us. Consider it a sign of our truce." Nicholas said. "We would like to join up with your alliance. Nataline, Tatiana, and myself that is."
"I don't see Tatiana anywhere though." Valerie looked around but didn't see her.
"She must be off somewhere. We'll tell her about the vote later." Nataline assured her.
"S-So who are w-we voting for t-tonight?" Phoebe asked.
"We will vote however you want to vote." Nicholas said as he glanced at each member of Cassie's alliance. "It's your call. Jut tell us how to vote this round as long as you help us with our vote next round."
"It's a good deal." Cassie tipped her hat backwards. "But we gotta think about it, though."
"A-And we should t-tell Marvin about it too." Phoebe added.
"Well we should at least tell them who we're voting for." Valerie said and turned to Cassie.
"That's fair enough. We plan on finishing off whatever's left of Desmond's alliance." Cassie told the two.
"So that would be Felix and Arnold." Nataline listed.
"Might I recommend we go after Arnold?" Nicholas spoke up. "Between the two, he is the physical threat when it comes to challenges. Should he win immunity one day, it could turn the tables on us."
"I doubt he can do that with just the two of them but I see your point." Cassie shrugged. "We'll vote for Arnold tonight then."
"T-Then I'll go tell Marvin about t-this." Phoebe offered and went off to go look for Marvin inside the conservatory.
"This is gonna be one easy night." Valerie giggled.
"It sure is." Nataline smiled.
"But just askin' out of the blue, who do you have in mind next time we have to vote?" Cassie asked Nicholas. "Ya did say you want us to help ya out after this right?"
"I plan on voting out Lucy." Nicholas stated.
"Lucy? Why her? She ain't strong." Cassie blinked.
"But she is smart." Nicholas reasoned. "She may even be this game's cunning strategist. Let's just say she has a way of manipulating people as if she's a criminal. A well organized and highly intelligent criminal, that is."
"Wow. That went dark fast." Valerie remarked.
"But it is true. She has a criminal record." Nicholas said matter-of-factly. "I want to play this game fair and square. Lucy is the kind of person to use underhanded tactics in order to win."
"Well if ya say so." Cassie shrugged and tipped her hat forward. "We'll vote for her after we take out Arnold tonight."
"It's a deal then." Nataline smiled and put her hands together. "I should go find Tatiana." She walked off.
"It must be nice being in charge of a powerful alliance." Nicholas commented.
"Yeah! Cassie here is a born leader!" Valerie exclaimed and winked at her friend. Cassie just scratched the back of her head gave a light chuckle.
"Maybe. I take charge sometimes back at my hometown so it's nothing new." Cassie said.
"I believe it will benefit you well." Nicholas nodded with a small smile.
~Confessional~
Cassie: I'm gonna tell Lucy about what Nicholas is planning. I can't trust the detective guy, he's like the biggest challenge threat here, y'know? But I'm still down to voting for Arnold tonight.
Nataline: I hope Nicholas knows what he's doing. Trying to get close with the biggest alliance could lead to so many different things. I'm here to help him out while I plan to eliminate Terrance in the long run, but I don't want that to backfire on me. I wonder what Tatiana thinks of all this.
Valerie: This game is such a breeze when you're part of such a strong alliance! I wanna pull my weight too so I'm gonna see how everyone else is voting tonight.
Nicholas: I know for a fact that eliminating Lucy will no be easy task. That is why I want to enlist Cassie's help for this. Her alliance is roughly the biggest one in the game which makes the chances even higher. All I have to do is ensure Lucy does not win any challenges while keeping myself safe.
~End Confessional~
Lucy was about to meet Jude at the park when she was pulled aside by Tatiana.
"I'll make this quick so you better listen up." Tatiana said to the other girl in a confronting tone.
"And what is it this time?" Lucy smiled innocently but her red eye glowed just as she said that.
"I'm telling you for the last time to let Terrance go. Stop feeding him lies." Tatiana glared.
"I'm not feeding him any lies." Lucy smirked. "I'm giving him what he wants. I'm going to help him eliminate Nataline and Nicholas. Can you do the same? Oh wait, you can't!"
"What?" Tatiana looked taken aback.
"Because you're aligned with those two. The very same enemies of Terrance. Don't you think you're the one being selfish by telling me to stop?" Lucy raised her eyebrow.
"But I.." Tatiana didn't know what else to say as she stepped back. "I know that you'll betray him one day!" She retorted.
"Is that so? Perhaps you're right." Lucy laughed evilly. "But what of it? I can't hold his hand throughout the entire merge. Not to mention he has a better chance of winning challenges than I do. If anything, I'm giving him too much of an advantage."
"Well that's true." The gamer girl conceded.
"But what about you? If you promise him the final two, do you think he will accept? You, who acted as one of the Red Siths power players. You, who has enough social power to garner everyone's support." Lucy listed.
"B-But he has assets too!" Tatiana argued.
"But does it compare to that mecha chocobo you have? Does it?" Lucy asked as she brushed past her. "Next time you think of others, think of the pedestal you stand upon. Think about the gap. You're out of his league. Why won't you embrace it?" She shook her head and continued on to the park, leaving Tatiana there speechless.
~Confessional~
Lucy: *her red eye glows a bit* Who does Tatiana think she is? She likes him, yet she doesn't realize that we're still playing the game. Emotions will only cloud your judgement. They aren't going to win you the game. Now on the other hand, Cassie told me something really interesting. It looks like Nicholas is ready to make a move against me, huh? Well I'm not afraid. This is going to be another easy night.
Tatiana: I know Lucy is wrong somehow. I just got caught up in her arguments, that's all! I have to do something quick. I need to vote her off immediately so that she won't do any more damage!
~End Confessional~
Marvin found Cyrus in the conservatory by himself and decided to talk to him.
"Cyrus, let's talk about the vote." Marvin offered.
"What is there to talk about? Are you gonna say Lucy sent you?" Cyrus raised his eyebrow.
"No." Marvin shook his head. "I just want to ask about who you're voting for tonight."
"Well since there's no way Phoebe will go home tonight, might as well vote for Nataline and just throw away my vote." Cyrus said dismissively.
"Fine. Have it your way then." Marvin sighed and turned to leave.
"But how about you? Who will you vote for?" Cyrus asked.
"I'll try my best to make them vote for Nataline too. I'll also see who Cassie and the others will vote for." Marvin said. Right after he said that, Phoebe came running up to them.
"O-Oh. I You're t-talking with someone. S-Sorry." Phoebe said softly as she saw Cyrus.
"Go ahead. I'm done talking with him." Cyrus grunted and went to the far side of the conservatory.
"What is it, Phoebe?" Marvin asked her while giving a smile.
"We were j-just talking about t-the vote outside." Phoebe said. "T-They said w-we should vote for Arnold t-tonight."
"The soccer player? Sure thing." Marvin nodded. "The less physical threats, the better."
"A-And he's against our friends t-too." Phoebe added with a smile.
"Yeah. That's right." Marvin scratched the back of his head.
~Confessional~
Marvin: I really can't tell Phoebe that I technically have betrayed Cassie and the alliance. It's too risky and I know how much she cares for them. So for now, I'll do what they say.
Phoebe: I'm sure M-Marvin would never t-think about b-betraying us. He e-even agreed to vote for A-Arnold tonight so it's going to b-be fine.
Cyrus: Phoebe can enjoy her stay here for as long as she can, because one day elimination will come to bite her in the butt. Yes I am aware that throwing away my vote this round is dumb for someone in the merge, but I don't care what you people think anyway.
~End Confessional~
Terrance went to the park as Lucy instructed him to do earlier and saw that there were more people than he thought.
"Sup." Felix waved to him.
"That's the last one right?" Arnold turned to Lucy.
"Yes, that's right." Lucy smiled. "Now we can begin."
"Why are these two with us?" Terrance motioned his hand towards Arnold and Felix.
"I'll explain later. This strategy meeting comes first." Lucy said.
"Cool. So who are we voting for?" Jude asked excitedly.
"It has to be someone from Cassie's alliance right? Maybe Cassie herself once again!" Felix exclaimed.
"No, we aren't voting for Cassie tonight." Lucy shook her head. "We'll be voting for her lackey, Valerie."
"Really? She isn't dangerous at all." Arnold thought out loud.
"That's what you think. But I know the method she uses." Lucy said. "She may have a weak physical game, but her social game is strong. She cannot be underestimated, even if their alliance falls apart by Cassie's loss."
"What do you mean?" Felix asked with a tilted head, still confused.
"If we vote off Cassie, Valerie will simply take Phoebe and use both their great social games to rise up the ranks once more. It will be difficult to pick them off at this rate." Lucy explained. "Cassie, on the other hand, will likely not have anyone to turn to when her alliance crumbles down."
"But she can still win challenges." Terrance pointed out.
"Not always." Lucy smirked. "We have you, Jude, and Arnold to run against her in physical challenges. She won't last too long."
"But what will we do on the times she wins?" Jude asked.
"Simple. We vote off the other threats. Like Nicholas for example." Lucy said. "That way, we win the strategic game no matter what."
"Just as long as the others' votes are divided." Terrance said.
"That's correct. Although, that wouldn't be too hard." Lucy giggled.
"You mean you know that the votes will always be split?" Felix asked. "That's impressive."
"Thank you." Lucy smirked. "Tonight will be no different, I assure you. But just in case, I'll tell Marvin we're voting for Valerie."
"I trust you, Lucy." Jude said as he wrapped an arm around her.
"Same here. We got no choice after all." Arnold added. "Me and Felix will vote for her too."
"Yeah. Totally." Felix grinned. "Valerie won't know what hit her."
"I don't know Valerie much so I got no objections." Terrance adjusted his glasses.
"Don't worry, Terrance. You'll have your chance to shine soon." Lucy grinned at the techie boy. "Be patient, and the votes will fall in."
~Confessional~
Terrance: I'm not hasty to vote out Nataline and Nicholas anymore now that I heard Lucy's line of logic. And she's right, we do have the advantage in strategic planning. I just hope that tonight will go our way.
Arnold: I got no choice but to trust Lucy on this. I mean, she's got the brains and all to make this happen so I can't judge. I just gotta make sure Felix is still loyal to stick with me just in case something comes up.
Felix: Lucy is pretty cool when it comes to eliminations. Maybe sticking with her isn't a bad idea.
Jude: I'm a little concerned that Lucy is attracting boys into this alliance, but I have faith in her. No way is she actualyl gonna cheat on me right? *looks around a bit nervously*
~End Confessional~
(Elimination Ceremony)
Everyone gathered outside the conservatory once again and saw that thirteen steel chairs were there. Chris stood in front and waited for them to take their seats before he began.
"Welcome to tonight's elimination ceremony!" Chris started. "After tonight, we'll be back to the number originally meant for the merge."
"Oh right. I almost forgot about that." Tatiana realized.
"So after tonight, it'll definitely feel like the merge." Jude said.
"That's right." Chris grinned. "Well let's get right to it!" He got the space food container. "First one safe is obviously the challenge winner, Nicholas." He tossed it to the detective and he caught it easily. "Also safe are..."
"Terrance."
"Jude."
"Phoebe."
"Marvin."
"Cyrus."
"Felix."
"Tatiana."
"Cassie."
"Nataline."
"Lucy."
This left Arnold and Valerie in the bottom two.
"Ha! I bet everyone else voted for you~" Valerie winked.
"We'll see about that." Arnold smirked.
"I hope it doesn't end up as another tie breaker." Marvin said.
"That would be hilarious." Cyrus smirked.
"And the last space food container goes to..." Chris paused for dramatic effect.
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"...Valerie!" He tossed the last one to the flirt and she caught it then kisses it repeatedly.
"I'm still safe! Yes!" Valerie cheered and sighed in relief.
"Darn it. The final whistle and I lost." Arnold shook his head and looked down.
"Sorry to hear that dude." Felix went over and pat his back. "I'll do my best for us."
"I'm counting on you dude." Arnold gripped the prankster's shoulder and gave a short nod. "You got this."
"And that's why you shouldn't mess with us~" Valerie winked. "But that doesn't make me want you less." She added.
"Arnold, you leave this game at 13th place." Chris said to the soccer player and the white light broke through the clouds and shone down on him, taking his avatar out of the virtual world. "The rest of you may head back now except for Nataline, Phoebe, and Nicholas since they'll head back to the mansion with me."
Nicholas silently glanced at Lucy, who glared at him and clenched her fist. Marvin looked at Phoebe who seemed happy along with Valerie and Cassie before quietly heading back to the conservatory. Terrance grunted and adjusted his glasses, not bothering to look at Nataline who had a smirk on her face.
~Votes~
Nicholas: Arnold is a physical threat that must be dealt with quickly. Eliminating Lucy can wait for now.
Marvin: Lucy went to me before the ceremony started and told me that I should vote for Valerie. But if I do that, then Cassie will definitely be suspicious of me. Sorry, but I vote for Arnold.
Nataline: I didn't like Arnold so much so I have no qualms of getting him out. The less people likely to win challenges, the better.
Cassie: Y'all know by now that I don't like anyone who is bad to my friends. And that's why I gotta vote for Arnold.
Phoebe: E-everyone is voting for A-Arnold so I have to d-do the same. N-No hard feelings p-please.
Lucy: Valerie's social game cannot be overlooked and neither can Phoebe's. But for now, I'll vote off the flirt. She's the more aggressive one.
Jude: I'm gonna vote for Valerie like Lucy said. I know she's been nothing but nice to us, but I'm just playing the game so there's nothing wrong with that.
Felix: Totally voting for Valerie tonight. I can't believe that the underdog team is now among greater numbers! It's time to turn the tide in our favor.
Arnold: I'm voting for Valerie tonight. I'd actually wanna vote for Cassie again but I wouldn't risk splitting the votes like that.
Cyrus: My vote goes to Nataline. I'm just gonna waste my votes until the time has come to vote off who I really want gone.
Tatiana: This time, I'm voting for Lucy! Maybe she won't be eliminated but at least it'll send a message to her that I'm out to take her down.
Terrance: Voting for Valerie isn't such a bad idea. In the end, it makes Cassie's alliance smaller so why not?
Valerie: I'm voting for Arnold just so that our alliance will always be the biggest! I can just relax and take it easy now, huh?
~Eliminated~
(24th place) Richard - The Maestro
(23rd place) Delilah - The Serpent
(22nd place) Harvey - The Chill Guy
(21st place) Betty - The Phone Addict
(20th place) Wesley - The Blue Blood
(19th place) Shane - The Lone Wolf
(18th place) Ivy - The Distant Cloud
(17th place) Sarah - The Rocker Girl
(16th place) Nelly - The Arrogant Nerd
(15th place) Jane - The Survival Expert
(14th place) Desmond - The Jack of all Trades
(13th place) Arnold - The Soccer Player
Chris stood at the entrance of the conservatory and grinned at the camera. "And with that, Arnold takes the fall tonight! I guess even talented strikers can miss their mark." He chuckled. "We're back to twelve players, the number which usually means the merge will kick off. Lines have been drawn in the sand though some would rather traverse in the middle. Will Cassie out that Lucy has betrayed her trust? Will Terrance ever get his chance to strike back at Nataline? Can Phoebe remain oblivious to Marvin's schemes? Find out next time on Total...Drama...Sci-Fi Showdown!" He spread out his arms dramatically before the camera turned off.
And that's the end of Arnold. I always expected that he would go home early in the merge, I just didn't know at what point. This is because that despite not having many allies, he persevered and voted in the right way every time. It was also hard for others to vote him off considering there are bigger targets than him out there. But this is the end of the line for the ace striker, and I hope you all enjoyed his stay in the game for this long. See you all next time! :) XBloodLegendX